Chinese Epic 'Dunhuang Heroes' Flops at Box Office After Enemies Turned Into Generic 'Bandit Army'

The Chinese period war epic "Dunhuang Heroes" was once pinned with high hopes, but after nearly three years of withdrawal drama, its September 25 debut on mainland screens was met not with applause but with a string of negative reviews.

The film is directed by Cao Dun, director of "The Longest Day in Chang'an," and written by renowned author Ma Boyong, with a cast including Zhang Yu, Shawn Dou, Lei Jiayin and Zhang Yifan. It originally set out to bring to the screen the rousing history of Tang dynasty general Zhang Yichao leading the Guiyi Army to recover the Hexi region. But after release, Chinese netizens quickly noticed that not only had historical figures been renamed, but the original enemy army had also been turned into a vague "bandit army," leaving many history buffs stunned and questioning: "Does this even count as a historical film?"

"Dunhuang Heroes" was originally scheduled for release on December 22, 2023, but abruptly announced its withdrawal two days before opening, and was not rescheduled until this year.

The controversy stems from the fact that the film was originally set against the backdrop of the late Tang uprising led by Zhang Yichao against Tibetan rule. In the official release, however, jarring changes appeared: the famous historical general "Zhang Yichao" became "Zhang Youcheng," Dunhuang's ancient name "Shazhou" was changed to "Mozhou," the original Tibetan army was blurred into the "Hexi bandit army," and the names of related villain characters were also altered.

Some Chinese netizens lashed out, asking why, if the film is adapted from real history, even the hero's actual name could not be preserved. Others felt the changes stripped the originally weighty historical story of its depth involving ethnicity, politics and war.

Observers have speculated that the repeated revisions may be linked to the sensitive historical subject matter, though the production side has not fully explained the actual reasons for the withdrawal and changes.

More embarrassing still, the film has not only drawn polarized reviews but also performed poorly at the box office. According to data from Chinese ticketing platform Maoyan, "Dunhuang Heroes" grossed about 8.32 million yuan (roughly NT$40 million) on its opening day, accumulating about 14.78 million yuan over the three-day Mid-Autumn Festival holiday. As of October 5, 11 days into its run, its cumulative box office stood at just about 17.7 million yuan (roughly NT$85.1 million) — even losing out to the re-released Marvel film "Avengers: Endgame."

Source: Liberty Times (Liberty Entertainment) — https://ent.ltn.com.tw/news/breakingnews/5605328